After so many images of death and devastation, what sweet relief to see pictures of joy. On the world’s TV news broadcasts, the screen was split on Thursday: celebrations in Gaza and celebrations in Israel, the scenes of cheering and clapping mirroring each other, as if to confirm that this was a war the peoples themselves wanted over long ago – and which most never wanted to begin.
The images were not unfamiliar. We had seen a version of them in January, when a ceasefire was announced to great jubilation. That held only until mid-March, when Israel broke the agreement and resumed its bombardment of Gaza, an experience that should temper, and caveat, the current hope with the knowledge that things can unravel at any moment. Still, this time, even the region’s most seasoned pessimists concede, the deal looks more durable.
